Butanol Analysis

1.2.1. Used as industrial raw material in synthetic organic chemistry
In China, butanol is mainly used to produce butyl acetate, butyl acrylate, dibutyl phthalate, and pharmaceutical intermediates. Butyl acetate, butyl acrylate, and dibutyl phthalate (DBP) accounted for 32.7%, 15.3%, and 9% of the total alcohol consumption, respectively. In addition, it can be oxidized to produce butyraldehyde or butyric acid.
1.2.2. Used as a solvent
Butanol is an important solvent and can be used for the extraction of grease, pharmaceutical, and flavor. It has also been used as additives of alkyd resin and organic dyes, printing ink solvent, dew axing agent, coatings production, and pigment thinner. In addition, it has been used as flavoring spices of the

Oxo synthesis and aldol condensation are chemical synthesis route, both of which use petroleum as the raw materials, and thus need a large investment and have strict technical equipment requirements. The biological fermentation of butanol from renewable resources (biomass) is generally carried out by C. acetobutylicum under control anaerobic conditions, with butanol, acetone, and ethanol as the main products at a ratio of approximately 6:3:1, and this process is referred as ABE

The process of propylene oxo synthesis for butanol production is as follows: propylene reacts with CO and H2 and generating n-butyraldehyde and isobutyraldehyde by cobalt and rhodium catalysts, respectively. n-Butyraldehyde and isobutyraldehyde are hydrogenated affording n-butanol and iso-butanol, respectively. n-Butyraldehyde is converted to octanol by Aldol condensation followed by hydrogenation. Depending on the reaction pressure and the catalyst, the process of propylene oxo synthesis of butyl alcohol can be divided into high-pressure cobalt method, cobalt-modified method, high-pressure rhodium method, and modified rhodium method, where the modified rhodium method has advantages of low temperature, low pressure, high rate, high ratio of the positive and isomer, less side effects, less rhodium catalyst, long life, recycling of the catalyst, and less equipment investment, butanol and octanol can switch production because of the poor selectivity, more by-products (propane and high boiling). High-pressure carbonylation synthesis technology has been replaced by low-pressure carbonylation synthesis technology using rhodium catalyst. Low-pressure carbonylation synthesis technology, using the